New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-08-15
NATIONAL CAPITAL TOPICS.
BOOK FULL OF ERRORS.

A NAVY OFFICERS COMMENTS ON THE LATEST
WORK OF THE ISTELLIGENCE BUREAU.
xy.su,xorox Auy H." Has tho Bureau OF Naval
r,,eoenc. sent its latest book 10 THE TRIBUNE for
review 2, inquired Navy officer u day. Inc Puonca-
tion he referred TO Is entitled "Recent Naval Progress
OF course publication OF this kind to be OF any use
must contain accurate information, yet this officer as
serted that the book full Of inaccuracies and misead
ing statements He said "The officers having charge OF
It's compilation seem to have scraped together all
the rumors which they had heard about vadous ships
In order to make book as largo as possible, regard
less Of the valuo of tho information contained
"As usual everything American Is shown In a.
bad light possible by this Angiomaniac bureau
For Instance, on page 243, speaking Oh Tho Atlanta
steam trials In the Long leland sound in April last the
officers say: tho trials not Intended for speed
trials but merely to ascertain the maximum lniuai
horse power which the engines would Develop ana 70
attain II possible the maximum power of $500 H. p
required by the contract. They give the mean
speed for the hours tIial, 10 IL knots, but do
not state the maximum speed, while In the case OF
English ships they careful to MAKE the maximum
speed very prominent. Again. on page 211 they uT
to explain the wrong description that they gave Id
their book last year Of the New Spanish CRUISER DS
saying: IL complied early Ill May, 1885, Hon
the most authentic professional London journals but
did not provery describe Vessel which underwent
considerable change In design and dimensions ater
the original plans were submitted IN conPeuuoh'
do not AIow any Jning in the London laIefS thaI
could have been rued 10 mean that THIS Vas " DO
the same as NO. ~, the plans Tor which were pur
chased by the Agent OF the once Of Naval lhuh Nh
pence al high prce. the TACT is that they uOh
want " Acknowledge that they were soiu III thdl
Transaction by ma ing II Represented that No. -
and the Spanish cruiser were hoh1cdI iLeI
give the corrccI description and nmehsioiS oil tAe
snip tnis Linie bu. do nOt .'e any cTo.i' 10 In
ih,BUNh ior totnuls ouC o ooAi HN''"A0 i''' Jun
"But nvtlco AOw nlucn mOre favorably they speak
fepuIed speed was SHOWN uP " Tue IkiSUhE aUout
sh montis ago. Secretary Whitney was warned Iaat
AiacIlty hUurs' ulai oi uAe Dolphin aA1
reasons as,ioneu Lnat were hiohiy connon"eo
tie country. Tne presen,nent OF the once oi IN
teiIaoncc seems a. intentionally misleading as .he
rst trial IL is caiIued run was made o. cf
Ito measured mile al lo' Knots, the engines lsihs
$50 ne, buttons. the second trial sfeed VI
1875 hnots is Gained for short unc. on aug u5t
"a, 1905, satisfactory trial was maze WIN "c,sn,
on board when tho engines worhed up 10 3'iVo
l. H. r. and developed a sleed oi lV.19 Knots. HOW
speed OF less than IL knots can be consdei od sar
Isfactory' In a vessel designed for much greater
speed and which claimed 10 have mae To-. knots
IS not e1 llaned. But thc rcsew VI the new Ehsnsn
ships is cons licuOus in the fact that no menuoD
Whatever Is mauc the English ship PnaetOn anu inc
three cylinders that we're broken Oh 10 many con-
I'm Tie oescnption Of the Baltimore the designed
horse power OF the engines Is given a.
Office to task for giving this away aiter ne h"s
av arded contract for only 1900 l. H. T. win .
prmium OF a hundred do isis for each horse power
H. s1crss NJ this In the description Of Gunboat No
Q on mage 241 the number of b0ners Is stiteu a.
four but the plans only call for tWO' III al Vi no
othsr information about our Navy Is as incorrect a.
this, how much reliance eau DO PLACID upon inc IN
formation from abroad - A.. ....
"The book has one redeeming feature In that some
ilrhten the weary hours OF : Jack al sea one o.
tho Of tho Jokes occurs on page "a wneir no
English ship Orlando l. sad TO have usoe az az
sseed, by patent log over the measurd III - VI ~
knots This reminds one OF the way they arc sac So
Ia weigh hogs down in Texas. They balance th'
hn, with lot OF and then guess at The Woish,
tho English shin Acorn that fu'l, ca .Tal uaca
forced DAFT with all weights on board. took Iince
June A. 1876. the dranGht OF the ship benz II IT,,
Inches forward and a feet 0 inchrS an mn snrJc6
AID Mai took place outside Plymouth Breaf water.
the shin drawing IL feet inches tOrWad anu -
fret aft etc. How the h7ucht Of the shlp wa ~
crea ed after all tho weights were on bnAh u nov
ststeJ. So the reader Is cft to JUDGE 'or hinscI
wbether tho water outside Plymouth Break"aicr - %,
eas density than elsewhere or whrthor re e." ns
in svOlrdupOis brought the ship Gown iDol 1870 I,
in the water on page 253 II l. stated o' the de,'.I
daucht OF tho English .hp Thnn t.r lines be-.
low sThe mean draugAt Of this vessel. with r"ri''i
WEIGHTS on board Is found 20 he feet or on ~
Greater than "a orsina ~ DESIGNED the ga. NV,
being one-eishth greater than designed shshu'
exceeded only. -. - - 60.
0On nare 90 Il an alerod descriptloB o. the San-
,sh tnrredO vessel Destruction il@re ~ 2 pu'yir ior
rnqincers but whether or not plye VIII 20 si" 81;
he vessel Is stated TO he II feet and the 7tfO OF
fbe engines ret. The puzzle Is Row 20 ss y az
enrirs Of fonr feet stroke INTO huI - ho l,Ie "a
wi Tho owr feet OF s'rote are feet Nv and two
feet down especially "a al Of the daiy na'cIs
have contained d"scrirtioNs on this Nes ,n, Jew
Illustrations and an indeV led koy womu ha|o O0o" "
valuable addition to the DOOR,.